


Puzzle Pieces

by STARSdidathing



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Developing Relationship, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Friends to Lovers, Friendship/Love, Kissing, Loki & Tony Stark Friendship, M/M, Pining Loki (Marvel), Wordcount: 1.000-5.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:41:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26001328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/STARSdidathing/pseuds/STARSdidathing
Summary: Tony wasn’t surprised very often, but the last thing he expected when spending time with his closest friend was to be kissed.
Relationships: Loki/Tony Stark
Comments: 48
Kudos: 491





	Puzzle Pieces

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this randomly when stalled a few months ago. Just some freewriting to get my head out of its funk. It turned out okay, so I'm posting it today. Hope you like it :)

Tony wasn’t surprised very often, but the last thing he expected when spending time with his closest friend was to be kissed.

It was a pretty normal day before that, all things considered.

Tony had been overworking and had lost himself in a project. Loki had swept in like a whirlwind and dragged him from his lab. He refused to take no for an answer and ignored Tony cursing him.

When Loki promised to take him to his favourite restaurant, Loki’s treat, Tony still wasn’t happy, but his stomach took the time to rumble. He also hadn’t seen Loki in a week. So, in the end, he was willing to give in.

He showered, changed into something presentable and climbed into Loki’s poison green sports car.

Tony might be the Stark in Stark Industries; a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist with his face on most magazines. 

But Loki was the silent shark in the waters, investing in start ups with potential and making millions off their success. He had a knack for reading political, financial and social waters and capitalising on it. They’d met at a gala when they were both sixteen and bored. They'd managed to steal some alcohol and escape from their parents to get drunk on the roof.

They were trust fund kids who liked mischief and were too smart for their own good. Loki had struck out on his own, while Tony had stuck with his father’s company. But, Loki had helped him diversify and make even more money than Howard could have imagined. 

They were a great team who happily tipped each other off on potential investments.

Loki was his oldest friend and he could understand Tony better than anyone could. Loki could also make him stop and _listen_ when he ignored everyone else. It was why he went along with lunch, ate a large meal and then let Loki drive him out of the city for a break.

He complained, of course, and put on ACDC just to annoy his friend. Loki preferred classical music, and what followed was a series of music requests until JARVIS got sick of them both and found some strange heavy metal cover of Puccini.

Tony _loved_ it, and Loki laughed loudly and congratulated JARVIS on his compromise. 

Loki had been the first person to truly _get_ that JARVIS was more than just lines of code, and JARVIS had a large soft spot for Loki too. JARVIS was even wired into Loki’s phone. It was how they managed to gang up on him so much.

When they arrived, it was exactly where Tony expected Loki to take them. It was a place they’d visited hundreds of times when they wanted to just get _away_. It was in a secluded bit of parkland that they’d long since bought and cordoned off. People still snuck inside, but they were of the opinion that fellow mischief makers were allowed.

Tony had climbed out of the car and breathed in the familiar smell. In the past, they’d lain on the hood of their cars, but neither of them had cars best suited for that anymore and Loki had taken to packing a blanket. He whipped it out without question and laid it on the ground underneath the trees.

Tony dropped down on it, laying on his back and looking at the leaves through his sunglasses. Loki laid down beside him, their bodies pressed together and their hair brushing. Tony relaxed for the first time all week.

Loki had a strange calming effect on him. He was the only one who could make Tony slow down and rest. He could make Tony _enjoy_ nature when he normally despised being away from his lab and readily accessible technology. 

They didn’t lie there in silence; Loki spoke about his current projects and start ups and Tony listened. He hummed and chimed in where applicable, but he mostly just smiled at the sound of his friend’s voice. His eyes were closed and he was just enjoying being with Loki.

He could almost fall asleep. It had been a busy couple of days and he was running on very little rest, but he wasn’t quite dozing when he heard and felt Loki shift. He didn’t bother to open his eyes, too comfortable where he was.

He _did_ react when he felt lips press against his own. Tony’s eyes snapped open. He knew instinctively that it was Loki, (the feel of his body above and curved towards him, the smell of his cologne, the brush of his hair against Tony’s face – the fact they were the only two there) but he couldn’t believe it.

Tony sucked in a small breath and he saw Loki’s eyes snap open before he jerked back. His eyes were wide. 

“I…” Loki swallowed. “I shouldn’t… I didn’t mean…” 

He looked away and Tony saw Loki’s cheeks flush. He’d never seen his friend blush or stutter over his words.

“You just kissed me,” Tony murmured, still feeling shocked. He didn’t understand it. “Why?”

Loki grimaced and although it didn’t look like he would answer, eventually he did.

“You looked… happy,” Loki admitted. He still wouldn’t catch Tony’s gaze and when he smiled it was wry. “I often want to kiss you when you look like that.” He gave a heavy sigh and turned away, dropping down on his back to stare at the sky. “I’m surprised it took me this long.”

Tony felt like he could fall over. His mind was working frantically, trying to work it out. 

“You’ve, uh, wanted to for a while?” He finally got out.

Loki looked bitterly amused. “Only a decade.”

“A _decade?_ ”

Loki finally glanced at him, and his expression had turned deadly serious. “You may not think it, Anthony, in fact, you may deny it at every turn, but finally I _will_ say it to you.”

“Say w-what?”

Loki’s eyes blazed and he turned so they were laying on their sides, face to face. “You are the _easiest_ person to love.” He swallowed. “And to fall in love _with_.”

Tony’s mouth fell open. “You… you…”

“Love you,” Loki admitted, looking as if a weight rested on his shoulders, even as fondness curved his lips in a smile. “I have loved you for a very long time.” He sighed again, and his expression turned rueful and regretful. “And I should not have kissed you.”

Tony felt like flailing. He wasn’t good at emotional situations. There was a reason he chose to sleep with people once then kick them out of bed. Loki was his longest standing friend and most days Tony thought that was a glitch in the matrix.

So, to hear that his friend loved him, actually _loved_ him defied all possible sense and reason.

“But, I’m… why would you…?”

“Because you are far more brilliant than you believe,” Loki told him, watching Tony with aching affection. “Because there is no one in the world I admire or care for more. Because,” Loki swallowed, and although he looked wary, he didn’t stop. “Because I would spend my life by your side, dragging you from your lab, making you eat and making you laugh even… even if I could only ever do it as your friend.”

Tony only felt more like reeling. Loki had always told him the truth, ever since he got a reputation as being a wordsmith, he’d made a promise to never _lie_ to Tony. In return, Tony had offered the same. They traded in cold hard truths and didn’t sugar-coat.

And yet, Loki never talked about his feelings. Neither of them did. They tactfully avoided them and found ways to distract themselves. 

This was unprecedented and it hurt. Loki was laying down his heart. He was voluntarily placing it on the railroad tracks for Tony to destroy.

“You… could have lied to me,” Tony whispered. “You didn’t have to tell me-”

“And wait another ten years to make a mistake?” Loki asked, sounding incredibly tired. “Telling you now means you can… stop me from doing it again. And besides, I promised I’d never lie to you.”

And what could Tony say to that? What could he _do?_ This was his oldest friend; the person Tony would drop anything for. The person he would listen to when he ignored everyone else. Loki was the one who could make him smile when he was in the darkest mood, or comfort him when he was at the lowest low.

Loki was… he was the most important person in Tony’s life, and he looked sad and deflated. Tony hated seeing Loki unhappy and had always been willing to do anything to make Loki grin.

He didn’t even think before he lent forward and kissed the other man. 

Tony didn’t know what he was doing, but when Loki made a small sound of need and gripped Tony’s shirt, Tony’s stomach flipped and his heart clenched. He expected the kiss to deepen not for Loki to push on his chest and disconnect their lips.

“ _Tony_ ,” Loki hissed, his voice raw. “Don’t you _dare_ do this.”

“Do what?”

Loki made a pained noise. “ _Pity._ Would you really just-”

“No, no,” Tony insisted, his eyes wide. “Loki, I wouldn’t-”

“Then what the fuck are you doing?” Loki growled, his accent sharpening his words. 

It showed how distressed he was and Tony was acting again without thought, wrapping his arms around his friend and pressing them close. Loki let out another hitched noise, but he didn’t shove Tony away this time.

Tony held him tightly – too tightly, probably, but he was afraid to let go.

Everything had turned on its head and Tony was struggling to catch up. He’d barely slept, he _sucked_ at emotions and the person who was usually his anchor in a storm was the one who had thrown him out to sea. He didn’t know what to do, only that losing Loki was the one thing he _wouldn’t_ do.

And he said as much.

“Not losing you,” Tony said, his voice firm despite the tremulous nature of his emotions.

He felt Loki still. “What?”

“ _Not_ losing you,” Tony hissed, and then he kept talking. “I’m not… Loki, I don’t… you _know_ I don’t know how and, you just.” He sucked in a breath and closed his eyes. He turned his face into Loki’s shirt, breathing in his friend and letting it calm him down. “You’re the one I go to when everything gets too much, when I can’t wrap my head around _people_.” He swallowed. “I can’t wrap my head around this but I… I will.”

Loki remained unresponsive for a long moment before he sighed. His hand was tentative but it came to rub Tony’s back in comfort. When he wasn’t rebuffed, he began to stroke up and down in slow motions.

“Tony,” he said. “How I feel isn’t a puzzle piece you can slot into place. It’s not-”

“It is,” Tony argued, raising his head and catching Loki’s uncertain, sad eyes. “Loki, if there is anyone in the world I could love, it’s you. I don’t even have to think about that.”

Loki sucked in a breath. “Tony…”

“You’re the one who makes everything work better,” Tony said. “You make _me_ better and you put up with me. You _like_ me. I can’t stand people, but I can always stand you. I let you take me away to the middle of _nature_ and you make it fun. I slow down when I’m with you, and it never makes me bored. I don’t know how to… love, but… that’s, that’s close, right?”

Loki’s eyes were still wide, but unlike the misery of before there was something bright, something _hopeful_. 

“That… does sound close… but, Tony. What I want is more than just our friendship, it’s-”

“Partnership? A romance? A relationship? Like, we’ll date. Like we do now, but, as a date.”

Loki nodded, not seeming able to say the words. Tony just smiled. 

“Then, ask me on a date. Or, I’ll ask you.” Tony lent a little closer. “And you can kiss me again, when I’m not asleep. I liked it, when we did it just before – well, before you pushed me back. It made my heart race; did you know that’s the first time someone has made me-”

Tony’s words were cut off, but it was by Loki’s lips and unlike when someone interrupted him, when Loki did it, he just relaxed. He closed his eyes and leant into the other man’s touch and felt his heart pick up again.

He also felt something fall into place that way that Loki said it wouldn’t. It was something he’d never quite realised; a puzzle piece just waiting to be discovered. Tony only felt delighted as he pulled the other man down on top of him.

If this was any indication, maybe, love wouldn’t be so complicated after all.

**Author's Note:**

> Sometimes, I like to write a Tony who is kind of... demiromantic? Or maybe not so much that as, idk, unable to grasp love and romance very well. It's hard for him to distinguish it for a long time.
> 
> I'd say him and Loki start to date and they are having a great time, they're happy, but Tony is still working his feelings out. But one day, he looks at Loki and feels it deep in his heart and goes "Oh. I'm in love with you too."
> 
> And then even more happiness and kisses :)


End file.
